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Chapter 35: Ahead Of The Storm

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The scouts’ testimony wasn't enough, Badr had to see it for himself.

His every step was met with broken bodies, torn flesh, and mangled steel. It was a slaughter. Both Midaharian and Ahrman forces met a horrific demise, but by whose hands? And where was Lahan?

Knowing that he wasn’t among the butchered was only slightly better than not knowing where he was at all. If the Ahrman had captured him why hadn’t they contacted them with a list of prisoner demands.

He mounted his spotted mare and rode toward the Ahrman border. Whether he liked them or not, the answers he sought were within their walls. Manned watchtowers were the first thing that greeted travelers on the road to the Ahrman capital. Badr was astonished to find them abandoned, some thirty miles from the city.

If it were any other metropolis, he wouldn’t be surprised. The Ahrman were notorious for relaxed security in some of their smaller, less significant towns. But never the capital.

An unusually large and wide storm cloud moved expeditiously in his direction, leaving darkness in its wake. Most clouds that looked as irritated as the one before him would let their anger be heard. Yet, neither thunder nor lighting accompanied the towering wall of clouds.

His mare stirred and whined anxiously as if under the eye of some dangerous predator. “You’re not afraid of a storm, are you, girl?” Badr said, calmly. She wasn’t the only one a little unnerved by the spectacular formation. He pulled a spyglass from his saddlebag for a closer look at the weather phenomenon, but movement up ahead beckoned his attention.

Through the spyglass he witnessed an army of inhuman forces marching in all directions, apparently leaving the capital behind. “What in the name of the emperor...?!” he gasped, peering through the spyglass. “There must be hundreds of them!”

Their movement was matched with the progression of the massive storm cloud, and it was constantly spreading far and wide. They would reach the border to Midaharia by sundown and from there, a broken and defenseless capital.

Badr held tightly to his horse’s reins as she galloped back down the path.

Five Points

One of the largest cities on the continent gained its name from the five mountainous peaks that surrounded it. Most commonly known for its paper factories and lumber mills, the cozy metropolis was home to over a hundred thousand civilians. Today, silence had fallen on the factories and mills as workers and their families were ordered to leave the city.

Chased by an ever-growing cloud of terror, weary refugees that were lucky enough to escape the capital were told to continue on. How far they had to go was a question none of the commanding officers could answer.

Evacuating by chariot would have been less time consuming, but of three cities on the Ahrman continent that possessed a port for the steam-powered flying machines, Five Points was not one of them. The only place suitable for landing was a recently cleared portion of a forest just beyond city limits.

After quite a bumpy landing, the queen swore off flying the friendly skies.

There was a royal estate in every city across the territory, but the modest single-story, double-acre dwelling in Five Points was the most humble looking. She scratched her skin at the sight of the dry vegetation that covered its slanted roof.

“Are you sure about this, your majesty?” asked strategists Benneth, watching the cloud advance over the horizon. A light breeze captured a pasture of dandelions, setting their seeds into the air. “We may be in dire straits but running to our enemy for assistance? What would the king think?’

“What the king would or wouldn’t think has no bearing now, does it?” Katherine said, stepping out of the cottage with a curly head young man. “You take that letter and give it to the first Midaharian general you see, okay?”

“Yes, ma’am!” The youth ran up to his waiting griffon and jumped on its back. “I’ll take the fastest route possible!”

“Thank you, and be careful of that monstrous cloud!”

“Count on it, your majesty!”

She watched as the griffon spread its wings and joined the birds. Riding on the back of a beast seemed worse than flying by chariot.

“The way that cloud is moving, it’s sure to reach Ras Almal in less than a day,” Benneth said. “The Midaharians will be sharing our pain, soon, as well.”

“Excellent,” Katherine said, scratching her arm. “They’ll be more than willing to assist us!”

“I still say turning to them is a mistake. The royal guard..”

“Do you see any royal guard with me?! None of them have made it back from the capital! They’re likely all dead!”

Katherine stormed back inside but stopped in her tracks at the sight of a figure in the other room. “Jericha?” she hesitantly observed. “Is that you?”

“It’s me, your highness,” Jericha said, with a salute. She turned to the open front door and frowned. Breuke was still outside, still brooding. “And Breuke.”

Eyes gleaming, Katherine wrapped her arms around the young woman and squeezed her tightly. “Thank goodness! I thought you were dead for certain!”

“No, your highness,” Jericha said. Jericha kept her arms at her side. Physically touching the king or queen was off-limits for a royal guard. Not even a handshake was allowed. “I’m sorry we weren’t able to accompany you to Five Points, your highne--”

“Oh, stop it with ‘your highness’!” Katherine insisted. “You’ve earned the privilege to call me Katherine!”

Addressing the crown appropriately was the second rule in the royal guard's regulations manual. “Yes, ma’am.”

The queen shifted her attention to the door. “Is there something wrong with Breuke?”

Never give your Rebirth to the enemy was rule number one. “He...lost his Rebirth to Alba.”

“Oh no!”

“Let it be known that I had more faith in your return than our queen, Jericha,” Benneth said, sliding his arm into the sleeve of his jacket. “Now, if you’ll pardon me, I must pack my things and join the evacuation.”

“Benneth!” the queen barked. “You will ensure the safe passage of all women and children before yourself, is that clear?”

Benneth lowered his voice and said a handful of words, then turned to the queen with a forced smile. “Yes, of course, your majesty.”

“Where are you taking the evacuees, your highness?” Jericha asked.

“Right now the plan is just to stay ahead of that creature cloud until we find a way to stop it.” Katherine slid her finger over a wood table, pushing a thin layer of dust along as well. It had been a while since she or the king visited this place. If the situation weren't so dire she'd have Sia on her hands and knees dusting and scrubbing right about now. “So, how bad was it in Perigrah?”

“Horrible. Has Sisten been in contact with you yet?”

“No, not yet.”

Jericha glanced over at Breuke. The enemy’s numbers were growing by the minute. The royal guard couldn’t afford to lose any more firepower. “Breuke and I will assist you when you’re ready to evacuate, your highness. We’ll be right outside.”

“Jericha?”

“Yes, your highness?”

“I’m glad you two made it here safely.”

Jericha left the house and joined Breuke on the facade of the cottage. “I’m going to find out about Sisten. Stay with the queen.”

Breuke sagged against a column and watched dead leaves dance in the breeze. “Jericha, you know I’m not up for this right now.”

Jericha stepped down from the porch so she could look him in the eye. He’d been sulking ever since she dragged him from the clutches of death. Letting her time spent training on Khalina island get the best of her, Jericha threw her fist into his face and knocked him to the ground.

“The king is dead, the capital is lost, that evil cloud is steadily growing, and all you can do is mope! I’ve had it! You can either get your act together or climb on a mule and join the rest of the babies fleeing the city because I refuse to stand near a wimp!”

“What do you expect me to do without a Rebirth?” Breuke said, rubbing the sting on his jaw.

“I expect you to do your job!” Jericha mounted a horse and rode off.

As she progressed down the stone-paved path she encountered brigadier general Grant, walking his horse. He and Sisten were on the wall when all Hell broke loose. He should know what became of her fellow royal guard.

“Brigadier General!” she called and waved. “Sir!”

“Lady Jericha,” Grant said, his eyes widened with joy. “Managed to claw your way out of Hell too, I see.”

“Yes, sir. Me and Breuke both. It’s great to see you’re safe as well.”

“Yes, for now. How’s Queen Katherine fairing?”

“As well as can be, sir. Have you seen Sisten at all?”

“I have.”

“Is he well, sir?”

“He should be dead if you ask me. The man nearly burnt himself to a crisp to escape Tasha.” As he turned to look back at the cloud, Grant lifted his cap and rubbed his wavy hair. “I don’t envy you all having to use those Rebirths the way you do.”

At least some of us know how to use them. “Where’s Sisten now, sir?”

“I’m on my way to share my report with the Queen. You’re welcomed to join us, Lady Jericha if you wish.”

“Yes, sir.”

“I passed Benneth on the way here. He said something about the queen enlisting the aid of the Midaharians. Is that true?”

“That’s news to me, sir.”

“I see. I suppose we’ll find out together.”

Meanwhile, near the Midaharian border

He couldn't push his horse any further, no matter how much he wanted to. Though the suspicious cloud was still coming, it wasn't as close as it was before. There were few things that could evoke fear in General Badr's heart, and what rained down from that cloud was now on the top of the list.

Could that cloud be the reason why Lahan was nowhere to be found? Was it responsible for all the death on the battlefield? Why was it spreading from the Ahrman capital?

"Mister General?!" a voice yelled from over his head. A griffon rider dropped from the sky and landed in front of him.

"You have a message for me, young man?" Bady asked, resheathing his sword.

"Whew! I'm glad I took that short cut! I might have missed you!" the griffon rider said. "This is for you, sir."

Badr took a long look at the letter given to him. It was stamped with the Ahrman crown! "This is from..?"

"Queen Katherine, herself!" The young rider jumped back on his griffon and took off in a haste. Badr stuffed the letter in his saddlebag and mounted his mare. His curiosity would have to wait until he returned to the Midaharian capital and warn his comrades of the encroaching storm.